Today, there are a variety of content distribution networks such as cable and satellite networks that are competing to bring various types of services, e.g., digital television programming services, on-demand services including video on-demand (VOD), MPEG video services, switched digital video (SDV) services, high definition television services, gaming services, and internet protocol services, to its customers/subscribers.
One of the ways that network operators try to distinguish themselves from competitors is by trying to offer new, different and varied services that will appeal to various segments of the public. For example by supplying dedicated entertainment services, e.g., programs that appeal to a majority of their customers as well as programs that appeal to specific portions of the population they can increase their customer base and the revenues they generate. By way of example, sports fans may desire a sports channel on which they can view programs dedicated to sporting events such as boxing events, football games, basketball games, soccer games, baseball games, volleyball tournaments, marathons, golf tournaments, tennis matches, car races, cycling races, etc. Movie buffs may wish to receive a video service that provides classic movies. Parents with young children may wish to receive video services providing cartoons. Others may wish any number of varied or different types of services such as new movie releases, dedicated news channels, Spanish language channels, weather channels, etc.
In addition to the operators being able to distinguish themselves from their competition by adding additional services, the network operators can also charge subscribers for premium or specialized services. For example, an operator may offer to its subscribers for a specific price, a video on-demand service wherein a subscriber can chose a movie from a listing of available titles and have the movie immediately transmitted to the subscriber's location. In addition, the subscriber may choose to pay an additional amount to receive the movie in a high definition television format.
Customers' demands and expectations for additional services have also been increasing. As the number of customers and the services they are provided increases so too does the requirement for additional network capacity also referred to as bandwidth to support the additional customers and services. For example, as more individuals buy high definition televisions, the number of subscribers requesting and/or expecting entertainment programs be provided in high definition television format is also increasing. Programs transmitted in high definition television format require about four times the bandwidth of the same programs transmitted in standard definition television format. Nevertheless, to meet its subscribers' requests and expectations network operators have increased the number and variety of programs that they provide in high definition television format. In many instances the network operator will provide a program in both standard definition television format and high definition television format. The ability to bring ever larger amounts of services (e.g., content and information) to an increasing number of customers/subscribers cheaply and efficiently is an on-going objective of network operators and directly affects a network operator's ability to sustain its customer/subscriber base and overall profitability.
In content distribution networks, e.g., the aforementioned cable and satellite networks, content, e.g., programs such as television shows or movies are typically transmitted to customers as encoded, multiplexed and modulated signal streams, e.g., MPEG-2 streams. Content distribution networks can be implemented using a wide variety of different architectures, configurations and components. One approach to implementing a content distribution network is to use a broadcast switching architecture with limited bandwidth.
From the above discussion it should be appreciated that in content distribution networks there is a need for allocating and utilizing bandwidth as efficiently as possible to maximize the usage of bandwidth in terms of revenue generating services and to providing subscribers the highest level of satisfaction possible with the limited amount of bandwidth available. While known attempts to address these needs have obtained some level of success there remains a need for new and improved methods and apparatus for efficiently sharing bandwidth between a variety of services in a content distribution system.